Notes on Theories of Causation of Crime

Section II: Theories of Causation of Crime

• Understanding the Value of Pleasures and Pains

  • An article of property is valued based on several factors that govern its desirability.
  • Factors Influencing Value:
    • Length of Time: How long the individual can keep it.
    • Certainty: The likelihood of obtaining it.
    • Timing: When it is expected to be possessed.
  • Intensity of Pleasure or Pain: Not traditionally considered because it is subjective and varies by individual use and expectations.
  • Fecundity and Purity: The potential for future pleasures or pains and the likelihood they won't be followed by opposite sensations.

• Pleasures and Pains - Legislative and Individual Considerations

  • Legislators must assess the value of pleasures and pains as they formulate laws.
  • Value Measurement for an individual focused solely on.
  • Factors:
    1. Intensity: The strength of the pleasure or pain.
    2. Duration: Length of time the pleasure or pain lasts.
    3. Certainty: The likelihood of experiencing it.
    4. Propinquity: The immediate availability versus future occurrence of the pleasure or pain.
    5. Fecundity: The probability of future similar sensations following an initial sensation.
    6. Purity: Likelihood that future sensations will be oppositional in nature.
    7. Extent: The number of people affected by the pleasure or pain.

• Analyzing Terror and Crime

  • To assess the general tendency of an act affecting community interests:
  • Begin with the individual most affected:
    1. Calculate pleasure values produced immediately.
    2. Calculate pain values produced immediately.
    3. Calculate subsequent pleasures and pains produced:
    • Fecundity: Future pleasures following initial ones.
    • Impurity: Future pains following initial pleasures.
    1. Sum values of all detected pleasures versus pains to determine overall tendency.
    2. Repeat the process for others affected; accumulate data to reach community-wide assessments (e.g., community balance of pleasure vs pain).

• General Application of Pleasure and Pain Analysis

  • The outlined analysis applies across all forms of pleasures and pains referred to variably (e.g., good or profit, evil or mischief).
  • This method is not new; it reflects human tendencies to understand their interests clearly. Pleasures and pains guide decision pathways in personal and governmental settings.

The Principle of Utility

• Governance by Pain and Pleasure:

  • Mankind is subject to two governing forces: pleasure and pain. They dictate actions and rational thought processes.
  • Every moral judgment and legislative action is intrinsically tied to an understanding of these forces.

• The Principle of Utility Defined:

  • The foundational principle that evaluates actions based on how they impact happiness.
  • Utility: An object's property to produce benefit, pleasure, or happiness, and to avert evil or pain.
  • This principle applies not only to private actions but also extends to governmental measures. The goal remains consistent: to either enhance or reduce happiness for individuals and the community.

• The terminology employed (e.g., good, benefit, happiness, evil, pain) identifies the same underlying concepts in varied contexts, signifying the necessity to evaluate actions based on their broader consequences.

• Philosophical Stance:

  • Any philosophical discourse set against the principle of utility indulges in impracticality unless it acknowledges the role of pain and pleasure as fundamental drivers of human behavior.

• Purpose of the Principle of Utility:

  • Provides a rational and systematic approach to moral sciences by establishing a measurable framework for judging actions based on their effects on happiness or suffering.

• Implementing Utility Theory:

  • Recognizes practical applications in everyday decisions and legislative processes, reflecting human behaviors that align with self-interest, validation the efficacy of the utility framework.